Who Should I Start? Javonte Williams or Elijah Mitchell

Thursday, September 11, 11:40 AM

Dallas Cowboys running back Javonte Williams was far and away his team's No. 1 option out of the backfield during their Week 1 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. It was unclear exactly how Dallas' running back touch distribution would shake out leading up to the campaign, but Williams was the unquestioned RB1 in the season opener. The former North Carolina Tar Heel out-carried teammate Miles Sanders 15-4, and out-snapped him by a hefty 47-11 margin. Sanders did break off a chunk gain, but Williams was able to punch two in across the goal line and didn't cough up a fumble like his counterpart. With rookie Jaydon Blue a healthy inactive, Williams is poised to lead this backfield for the foreseeable future. He's a decent low-end RB2/flex option.

Friday, September 5, 7:20 PM

Kansas City Chiefs running back Elijah Mitchell is a healthy inactive for the Week 1 regular-season opener on Friday night in Brazil against the division-rival Los Angeles Chargers, according to Nate Taylor of ESPN. It's bad news for Mitchell heading into his first year with the Chiefs, as it looks like he's the RB4 to open the year, behind starter Isiah Pacheco, Kareem Hunt and rookie Brashard Smith. The 27-year-old was getting some first-team reps early in training camp, but that was a long time ago in late July. Mitchell signed a one-year, $2.5 million deal with KC in the offseason after spending his first three NFL seasons with the San Francisco 49ers. In his three years in the Bay Area, the former sixth-rounder in 2021 out of Louisiana averaged 4.7 yards per tote on 327 rush attempts for 1,523 yards and nine touchdowns (five in his rookie season).